Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1980-073-19A, Emil Maurice

The Blood Order (german: Blutorden), officially known as the "Decoration in Memory (of the Munich putsch) of 9 November 1923" (), was one of the most prestigious decorations in the Nazi Party (NSDAP). During March 1934, Hitler authorized the Blood Order to commemorate the 9 November 1923 coup attempt of the Nazi Party. The medal is silver, with the obverse bearing a depiction of an eagle grasping an oak leaf wreath. Inside the wreath is the date and to the right is the inscription . The reverse shows the entrance of the Feldherrnhalle in relief (where the coup ended in defeat), and directly above is the angled

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. It ...

with sun rays in the background. Along the top edge is the inscription: ("And after all, you won").

History

The first issue of the decoration, struck in 99% pure silver, was awarded to 1,500 participants in the putsch who had also been members of the Nazi Party or one of its formations before January 1932 (continuous service), or had been cadets from the Munich Infantry School who marched in support of Ludendorff.Since it was illegal under the Weimar Republic for members of the Armed Forces to belong to political parties, the former cadets, as military officers, would have been unable to join the Nazi Party. Most of the cadet recipients were never in fact Nazis. All medals were numbered (except Hitler's and Göring's) and awarding was done very carefully. Unlike other medals, the ribbon was worn on the right breast of the uniform tunic in the form of a rosette and the medal sometimes was pinned on and suspended below. In May 1938, to the dismay of the putsch participants, the award was extended to persons who had (a) served time in prison for Nazi activities before 1933, (b) received a death sentence which was later commuted to life imprisonment for Nazi activities before 1933, or (c) been severely wounded in the service of the Party before 1933; subsequently it was further extended to members of the Austrian Nazi Party who had participated in the 1934 February Uprising or July Putsch, or who had received significant prison time or injuries for Nazi activities. It could also be bestowed on certain other individuals at the discretion of Adolf Hitler, the last recipient being Reinhard Heydrich (posthumous). These subsequent medals were struck in 80% silver with serial numbers above 1500 and did not carry the maker's name (J. FUESS MÜNCHEN) as the Type I medals did. If a holder of this medal left the party, the medal would have to be relinquished. In total 16 women received the award, two from the 'Altreich' ( Eleonore Baur and Emma Schneider) and 14 from Austria. Given the number of original marchers in the putsch, the number of awards given under the 1938 extensions (436), and the awards for outstanding service under those same extensions, the total number of recipients numbered fewer than 6,000. In November 1936, Hitler gave new "orders" for the "Orders and Awards" of Nazi Germany. The top NSDAP awards are listed in this order: 1.

Coburg Badge The Coburg Badge (''Das Coburger Abzeichen'') was the first badge recognised as a national award of the Nazi Party (NSDAP). History On 14 October 1922 Adolf Hitler led 800 members of the SA from Munich and other Bavarian cities by train to Cobur ...

; 2. Nürnberg Party Badge of 1929; 3. SA Treffen at Brunswick 1931; 4. Golden Party Badge; 5. Blood Order; followed by the Gau badges and the Golden HJ Badge.

Selected Recipients

Max Amann Max Amann (24 November 1891 – 30 March 1957) was a high-ranking member of the Nazi Party, a German politician, businessman and art collector, including of looted art. He was the first business manager of the Nazi Party and later became the hea ...

* Eleonore Baur * Joseph Berchtold * Johannes Block *

Martin Bormann Martin Ludwig Bormann (17 June 1900 – 2 May 1945) was a German Nazi Party official and head of the Nazi Party Chancellery. He gained immense power by using his position as Adolf Hitler's private secretary to control the flow of information ...

* Kuno-Hans von Both *

Philipp Bouhler Philipp Bouhler (11 September 1899 – 19 May 1945) was a German senior Nazi Party functionary who was both a (National Leader) and Chief of the Chancellery of the Führer of the NSDAP. He was also the SS official responsible for the euthanas ...

* Wilhelm Bruckner * Walter Buch * Karl-Heinz Bürger * Kurt Daluege * Eduard Dietl * Sepp Dietrich * Franz Xaver Dorsch * Anton Drexler * Hermann Esser *

Karl Fiehler Karl Fiehler (31 August 1895 – 8 December 1969) was a German Nazi Party (NSDAP) official and Mayor of Munich from 1933 until 1945. He was an early member of the Nazi Party having joined in 1920. In 1933, he became a '' Reichsleiter'' in the pa ...

* Josef Fitzthum * Hans Frank * Wilhelm Frick * Albert Ganzenmüller * Ernst Girzick * Hermann Göring * Ulrich Graf *

Jakob Grimminger Jakob Grimminger (25 April 1892 – 28 January 1969) was a German Nazi Party and Schutzstaffel (SS) member. As the official standard-bearer of the ''Blutfahne'', an iconic flag of the Nazi movement that had become bloodstained during the Munich P ...

* Edmund Heines * Walter Hewel * Reinhard Heydrich (posthumous, June 1942) * Heinrich Himmler (withdrawn, April 1945) * Friedrich Hildebrandt *

Hans Hinkel Hans Hinkel (22 June 1901 – 8 February 1960) was a German journalist and ministerial official in Nazi Germany. He studied at the University of Bonn, where he was a member of the academic fencing fraternity ''Sugambria''. Hinkel had served ...

* Adolf Hitler *

Adolf Hühnlein Adolf Hühnlein (12 September 1881 – 18 June 1942) was a German soldier and Nazi Party (NSDAP) official. He was the ''Korpsführer'' (Corps Leader) of the National Socialist Motor Corps (NSKK) from 1933 until his death in 1942. Early years Hü ...

Ernst Kaltenbrunner Ernst Kaltenbrunner (4 October 190316 October 1946) was a high-ranking Austrian SS official during the Nazi era and a major perpetrator of the Holocaust. After the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich in 1942, and a brief period under Heinrich ...

Emil Ketterer Emil Ketterer (6 August 1883 – 23 December 1959) was a German track and field athlete who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics. Later in his life, he became an ardent Nazi and SA-Obergruppenführer. As a medical doctor, he was involved in ap ...

* Günther Korten *

Werner Kreipe Werner Kreipe (12 April 1904 – 7 September 1967) was a German World War II Luftwaffe General der Flieger. Luftwaffe career Kreipe joined the Luftwaffe in 1934. Kreipe held various staff positions until the winter 1939/40, when he was selected ...

Theodor Kretschmer __NOTOC__ Theodor Kretschmer (26 November 1901 – 5 December 1986) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Military career Kretschmer joined the German Army ...

Wilhelm Friedrich Loeper Wilhelm Friedrich Loeper (13 October 1883 – 23 October 1935) was a German Nazi politician. He served as the ''Gauleiter'' in the Gau of Magdeburg-Anhalt and was the '' Reichsstatthalter'' of the Free States of Anhalt and Brunswick Military ...

* Erich Ludendorff * Emil Maurice * Josef Albert Meisinger * Heinz Pernet *

Karl-Jesko von Puttkamer Karl-Jesko Otto Robert von Puttkamer (24 March 1900 – 4 March 1981) was a German admiral who was naval adjutant to Adolf Hitler during World War II. Military service Puttkamer was born in Frankfurt (Oder) and was a member of the Puttkamer fam ...

Helmuth Raithel Helmuth Raithel (9 April 190712 September 1990) was a German officer who held the rank of '' SS-Standartenführer'' (colonel) in the ''Waffen-SS'' during World War II. While still at school, Raithel was swept up in the excitement of the Munich ...

Friedrich Josef Rauch Friedrich Josef Rauch was an '' SS Obersturmbannführer'' (Lieutenant Colonel) in charge of the Führer's personal security at the ''Reichskanzlei'' (Reich Chancellery) after 1942 and was alleged to be involved in the disposal of Nazi gold in 194 ...

Ernst Röhm Ernst Julius Günther Röhm (; 28 November 1887 – 1 July 1934) was a German military officer and an early member of the Nazi Party. As one of the members of its predecessor, the German Workers' Party, he was a close friend and early ally ...

* Alfred Rosenberg * Julian Scherner * Julius Schreck *

Walter Schultze Walter Schultze (1 January 189416 August 1979) was a German physician and ''Reichsdozentenführer'' (Reich Leader of University Teachers) in Nazi Germany between 1935 and 1943. Early life and career Schultze was born on 1 January 1894 in Hersbruc ...

* Franz Xaver Schwarz * Franz Schwede * Julius Streicher * Adolf Wagner * Robert Heinrich Wagner * Karl Wahl * Friedrich Weber *

Wilhelm Weiss Wilhelm Weiss (German Wilhelm Weiß) (31 March 1892 – 24 February 1950) was, in the time of the Third Reich, an SA-'' Obergruppenführer'' as well as editor-in-chief of the NSDAP's official newspaper, the ''Völkischer Beobachter.'' Early ca ...

History

Selected Recipients

References

Informational notes

Citations

Bibliography

Further reading